Improvement in railroad-car coupling



W. C. CLARK.

Car Coupling.

Patentedl Dec. 8, 1863.

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N. FETERS. PMMALUMOGRAPNER, wAsMlmlwnl D a NITED STATES WILLIAM CLARK, OF PORTLAND, MAINE.

liVPROVEIVIENT IN RAILROAD-CAR COUPLING.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. L0,820 dated December 8, 1863.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be-it known that I, WILLIAM C. CLARK, a resident of Portland, in the county of Cumberland and State of Maine, have invented an Improved Coupling for Railway-Carriages5 and I do hereby declare the same to be fully described in the following specification, and represented in the accompanying drawings, of which- Figure 1 is a top view, and Fig. 2 a longitudinal andvertical section, of a bunter-bar provided with my invention, the nature of which consists in the application of the link-pin to the bunter-bar, so that the pin may not only be capable of swinging on a fulcrum or hingepin, in manner as hereinafter described, but of being raised off such pin or fulcrum as occasion may require.

My invention further consists in the combination of alatch, or its mechanical equivalent, with the pin and its supports, when such pin may be applied to the bunter-bar, substantially in the manner, and so as to operate as hereinafter specified.

In the drawings, A denotes the bunter-bar, the link-recess c of it being provided in the usual manner with a flaring or tunnel-shaped mouth, b, for directing the link into the recess.

B is the coupling-link, and C is the pin for coupling the link to the bunterbar.

Leading from the linkrecess and out of the upper part of the bunter-bar, and just in rear of the mouth b, is a slot or passage, c, formed as shown in the drawings. Transversely across this slot and near its iront end is a round bar, journal, or fulcrum, d, which serves to support the piu C, by means of a hook or arm, e, extending therefrom and having the form as shown in Fig. 2. The pin C is provided with an eye, j', for attaching to it a chain or other means of lifting it out ofthe bunter-bar, and furthermore, when deemed necessary, the pin may be provided with a latch, g, to slide transversely through it, the said latch having a lever, h, by which the retraction of the latch may be effected. A spring, a', arranged with respect to the lever, as shown in Fig. 2, serves to advance the latch toward the hook or arm e. rIhe latch when pushed forward goes underneath the fulcrum-pin d, and serves to prevent the pin from being thrown out of place by any sudden jar or jolt of the carriage of the bunter-bar while such carriage may be in rapid motion on a railway.

The hook or arm e, if made as a stift' spring and arranged with respect to the link in manner as shown in Fig. 2, or more properly as shown in side view ing. Fi 3, which is an elevation of the pin separated from the bunterbar, will answer the purpose of the latch and perform the function of supporting the pin on the fulcrum d. The pin can swing or turn from a vertical position backward into a nearly horizontal one, or into that as exhibited by red lines in Fig. 2.

In the operation of coupling two carriages, the link on entering the bunterbar will be forced forward against the pin and will press it backward and cause it to turn on its fulcruni d until the link may have entered the recess of the bunter so far as to leave the pin free to fall back to place against a shoulder or abutment, k, which it will do by the action of gravity. \Vhi1e so falling back to place against the abutment 7c, the pin passes through the link and couples it to the bunter-bar. The disconnecting of the two may be effected by pulling the pin vertically upward far enough.

I do not claim a contrivance separate from the pin, and to hold it up and be pressed away from the pin by the link in such manner as to allow the pin to drop down through the link; but

I claim as my improvement- 1. The application of the pin to the bunterbar, so that the pin may be capable not only of swinging on a fulcrum in manner and under circumstances as stated, but of being raised ofi the fulcruin in order to disconnect thelink from the bunter-bar.

2. The combination of the latch or its equivalent with the pin and its supports, as described, when such pin may be applied to the bunter-bar, substantially in the manner and so as to operate as specified.

WILLIAM C. CLARK.

Witnesses:

FREDERICK CURTIS, F. I. HALE, Jr. 

